13 October 2009 / REUTERS, LA PAZ
Acclimatization is essential to play in cities at high altitude, Brazil coach Dunga said after his side lost Sunday's World Cup qualifier 2-1 to Bolivia.
"If you make four or five sprints you'll know what is the difference in playing at altitude," Dunga told reporters after Brazil's 19-match unbeaten run ended at the Hernando Siles in La Paz, 3,600 meters above sea level. "It's not inhuman to play at altitude, provided you have a period of adaptation. If there is time to adapt, there's no problem in playing at altitude, but to play here is not easy." There was nothing at stake in the match as Brazil had already qualified for the 2010 finals in South Africa while Bolivia had been eliminated though Dunga, who did not pick Kaka and Luis Fabiano for the match, denied he had not taken Bolivia seriously. Brazil, who lost a World Cup qualifier for the first time in La Paz in 1993, supported a 2007 FIFA ban on matches more than 2,750 meters above sea level because of the danger to visiting players' health and an unfair advantage to home sides. FIFA lifted the ban temporarily in May 2008 following protests mainly from Andean nations.
